What is a Contingency Fee?

An accident can create physical injuries, horrible emotional distress, loss of income, destruction of property, and high medical bills. You must focus on getting better, but the financial implications can be overwhelming. An injury victim struggles with how to pay a lawyer to help with the mountain of bills an accident can create and to obtain recovery from the responsible third party. At Owen, Patterson & Owen, our cases are handled pursuant to contingency fee retainer agreements. That means that if you have a personal injury case, we evaluate your case for absolutely no cost, and once we decide to take your case, you do not pay one cent until we win your case. If we don’t win, you pay nothing.
Some attorneys may want to charge you hourly for working on a personal injury case. Just say no. Others may attempt to obtain a deposit in advance for costs that may be incurred on your case. These costs may be for filing fees, jury fees, experts, depositions, investigators, and the like. There is only one thing to do: Run as fast as you can in the opposite direction.
The contingency fee agreement is the only agreement you should sign if you have been in an accident, and at OPO, that is the only form of retainer agreement we use. Its terms are not set by law and are negotiable (with a few exceptions). The time to negotiate is before execution of the agreement, not after the settlement is reached. A lawyer who works on a contingency fee agreement may work for several years on a case before getting paid anything. It is not uncommon to receive requests for a reduction in fees at the end of a case. Before asking for that reduction, consider whether you would agree to reduce your salary at your job after a really tough project when you were promised a certain amount.
It’s simple. At OPO, you are not required to pay any attorney’s fees or costs until we win, either by settlement or award. If we don’t win, everything we do for you, whether it takes weeks, months, or years, and whether it costs hundreds or thousands of dollars, or hundreds of thousands of dollars, is free. You owe nothing, ever, if we are not victorious in our quest for justice for you. We are here for you if you need us. Call us at 661-799-3899 or email us at info@opolaw.com.